Week 3: Model Minority Problems

 

Cultural values attributes to the stereotypes of Asian groups.

 

In Response to “Complicating the Image of Model Minority Success: A Review of Southeast Asian American Education.” By Bic Ngo and Stacey J. Lee

This article breaks down different Southeast Asian American groups and talks about the stereotypes each group faces and how their cultural values attributed to academia, economic status, and their struggles. The groups were Vietnamese, Cambodian, Hmong, and Lao people. It was interesting to learn that statistics fueled the stereotypes that some groups were self-sufficient and they were not in need of any assistance. What was surprising was that cultural values brought to America from some of the refugee groups were very much present and predominant in the next generations. In one case, Hmong girls have a higher high school dropout rate because of their traditional values to marry young and not placing much value on education. 

It is infuriating in some aspects that stereotypes of Asians still exist even today, in such a globalized civilization. The idea of “model minority” is upsetting because an Asian American student would have to work just as hard as any other student. The question is, if these stereotypes came from cultural values of hard-working, then why aren’t other minority groups labeled as the “model minority”? Cultural values like these shouldn’t be exclusive to Asian groups.

Xishan (Lucy) Ye

Section A02